FHFL targets 200,000 affordable housing units in 5 years

A social housing institution, the Family Homes Funds Limited (FHFL), has solicited the support of developers to achieve its target of building 200,000 housing units for low income earners in the next five years.

Speaking Thursday in Abuja, during the FHFL 2021 Housing Conference, the MD of FHFL, Femi Adewale, said that the housing deficit faced by Nigeria will be solved if developers can build at least 250 housing units per year.

He said: “The key objective of this conference is to ensure that our partners get on the same page with us and to maximize the opportunity to build the housing that millions of Nigerians want. Since the inception of the present administration, we have delivered 500,000 housing units. It has never happened in the history of Nigeria. Only the Shehu Shagari administration tried by building 200,000 houses under the housing scheme.

“We are building homes more than any other agency in Nigeria. However, we can’t do it alone. We decided in 2019 that we will no longer directly undertake development. That is where our partnership started. If we are to deliver housing at the scale we need, we need to partner with developers. However, our major challenge in the housing sector is that we struggle to find developers that can complete 500 housing units annually.

“Our target is to deliver 200,000 housing units for low income earners in five years. We are ready and willing to partner with developers to achieve this. We will provide 80 per cent of the total cost of the project, while the developer will provide 20 per cent; to show commitment and capacity. However, the developer must be prepared to develop not less than 250 housing units. We will ensure the houses are not built for money bags to buy and resell, but built for the affordability of low income earners; in order to solve the housing deficit issues faced by Nigeria.”